Black Dragon Tea Bar

I find it interesting that you note that this tea&...

2012-05-30T12:43:49.730-07:00

I find it interesting that you note that this tea's floral aroma came out after letting it air out, after roasting it. I think of floral qualities as more fleeting aromas, which tend to be lost to air more easily, and which are often destroyed by roasting. But this could be purely a false impression, because I don't have any experience roasting teas like you describe here...that's one reason it's particularly interesting for me to read about this process.

Went there last night and it's great. Lovely f...

2012-05-26T06:22:13.922-07:00

Went there last night and it's great. Lovely food and owner couple..

Owner will get me a supply of pine nuts too - bonus!!

Thousand thanks!!! At least I have a clue about th...

2012-05-26T04:32:20.306-07:00

Thousand thanks!!!
At least I have a clue about the meaning of it :-)
Yet it seems it is not standardised (checked on other tea), so the order and information are not same :-(
I definitely also need a chinese friend for help on translation ;-)

Thanks Israel. I've heard that too, though I&#...

2012-05-25T10:10:37.439-07:00

Thanks Israel. I've heard that too, though I've never tried it on myself.

We did try it once about a year ago when my daughter's arm was stung by nettles during a hike. She said it helped a lot.

Brett, Have you ever heard of using chewed fresh ...

2012-05-25T08:19:13.500-07:00

Brett,

Have you ever heard of using chewed fresh plantain leaves as a poultice for insect stings? Folks around here swear by it, but I can't say it has ever made much of a difference for me.

best,
Israel

I do read Chinese, but not very well, and so when ...

2012-05-23T06:20:30.159-07:00

I do read Chinese, but not very well, and so when I need to identify a character I use a website called nciku.com. You can draw the character in a box using your mouse and, provided you've drawn it as it appears, identifies and translates the character.

You already did your translations so maybe you won't find it useful! But I often use it to identify teas and read about them, so I like to have it in my tasting arsenal.

Very helpful, thank you!

2012-05-22T14:46:32.641-07:00

Very helpful, thank you!

It might (depending on how different the bowls are...

2012-05-17T12:18:19.325-07:00

It might (depending on how different the bowls are). For this cupping I was tasting 3 different Spring 2012 Alishan High Mountain Oolongs.

Does the same tea taste different in the various b...

2012-05-16T15:17:42.235-07:00

Does the same tea taste different in the various bowls?

Wow Eric... I thought I was roasting at a low temp...

2012-05-14T11:33:12.281-07:00

Wow Eric... I thought I was roasting at a low temp... but just 35°C? Now that really is low!

Also, 60 minutes seems too short to me. My tea has now spent 9 hours in the roasting-basket and I'd consider it now to be "lightly roasted."

I based these parameters that I used loosely on advice from a tea farming friend in Taiwan and an email from Josh Chamberlain (of J-Tea).

Good advice to talk to Shiuwen too. I'll make a point to do that soon.

I just did about 35C for 60min, rotating every 10 ...

2012-05-12T05:45:07.982-07:00

I just did about 35C for 60min, rotating every 10 to 15 min... came out pretty good, not as good as it should, but not bad at all !

Perhaps roasted at a lower temp? Have you asked S...

2012-05-12T04:07:26.040-07:00

Perhaps roasted at a lower temp? Have you asked Shiuwen? She might be of some help. I too have found a bag of neglected baozong with a broken seal. But from 2010, not '08. It's still not very good. I just might try roasting it today in my roaster.

Double pleasure, double happiness.

2012-05-08T01:21:20.189-07:00

Double pleasure, double happiness.

This sounds like a wonderful idea. Once I get my ...

2012-05-04T01:23:03.292-07:00

This sounds like a wonderful idea. Once I get my wife to allow my yixing collection to grow I am going to consider doing this.

Precious times!

2012-04-24T08:21:58.473-07:00

Precious times!

So very, very cool!

2012-04-09T07:30:34.101-07:00

So very, very cool!

This looks interesting, but it neither looks nor s...

2012-04-05T12:31:48.653-07:00

This looks interesting, but it neither looks nor sounds super appealing to me.

This looks really interesting...I've never see...

2012-03-27T13:34:13.579-07:00

This looks really interesting...I've never seen anything like it. I love how much fascinating stuff comes out of Yunnan province.

That's really cool...it looks quite pretty too...

2012-03-27T13:32:46.622-07:00

That's really cool...it looks quite pretty too!

Broccoli is oddly robust as a plant. I once found a broccoli plant coming up wild in a flower bed in Cleveland Heights, I have no idea how it got there. It had reverted back to a wild form with more leaves and less flowerhead, but it was definitely broccoli.

Grandpa-style yabao! I like the idea.

2012-03-24T06:42:46.996-07:00

Grandpa-style yabao! I like the idea.

I've actually had the pu-erh and bud version o...

2012-03-23T17:48:06.742-07:00

I've actually had the pu-erh and bud version of this...AS WELL as a black tea made from the same Camellia species. I'm a huge fan and really glad you guys are carrying the buds.

My friends thought I was trying to serve them gras...

2012-03-23T12:02:36.774-07:00

My friends thought I was trying to serve them grasshoppers when I first showed them what I was going to brew. Hahahaha! Talk about a hopping taste though! It's like spring just starts dancing in your mouth! Super delicious. :) Definitely a favorite of mine from your guys' shop.

Being frugal with tea leaves, especially the good ...

2012-03-23T03:36:23.360-07:00

Being frugal with tea leaves, especially the good ones. It's a virtue ;)

I got Lettuce in my Cold Frame I planted last Fall...

2012-03-22T19:53:39.117-07:00

I got Lettuce in my Cold Frame I planted last Fall that froze, now thawed and is growing again.

Oh, yes! We've been eating these little sprou...

2012-03-22T15:28:07.121-07:00

Oh, yes! We've been eating these little sprouts like crazy - and also the kale ones, too! Yummy!